


Common Cause

by Higuchimon



Series: Royal Hound [1]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! GX
Genre: Christmas Advent 2017, Diversity Writing Challenge, Duel Spirits, GX Month 2020, Gen, Off-screen Deaths
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-08
Updated: 2020-09-08
Packaged: 2021-03-07 01:13:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,952
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26368498
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Higuchimon/pseuds/Higuchimon
Summary: Those he cared for slaughtered without reason.  Too proud to die.  Burning with the desire for revenge.  Eyes of brilliant gold.  Haou - or a new friend?
Series: Royal Hound [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1916212
Comments: 4
Kudos: 4





	Common Cause

**Series:** Royal Hound|| **Title:** Common Cause  
**Characters:** Juudai, Wolf (OC), Holy Elf (OC)  
**Stories:** 1-5|| **Words:** 3,815  
**Genre:** Drama|| **Rated:** G  
**Challenges:** Diversity Writing, GX divergent/alternate timelines, I22, -10 1-shots; Christmas Advent 2017, day #12, someone gets a pet; GX Novella Masterclass, #5, the AT Tracks; GX Month #9, Born To Be Bad  
**Notes:** This takes place during Juudai's rule as Haou. It's not going to change things that much.  
**Summary:** Those he cared for slaughtered without reason. Too proud to die. Burning with the desire for revenge. Eyes of brilliant gold. Haou - or a new friend?

* * *

Haou’s golden eyes shifted back and forth as he and his warriors crossed over the rising hills and he could see the terrain that unfolded before them. Scouts reported back that everything seemed peaceful and their target village would be within striking distance shortly. That pleased him; the more souls for Super Fusion, the better. 

Something didn’t feel right about this area, though. He couldn’t say for certain what it was, only that it was far too quiet. The forest behind them had been full of life, even if that life quieted down and stayed out of his way. He’d known it was there regardless. But here – there wasn’t anything and all of his instincts told him that there should have been. 

He glanced to where his Death Duelists waited for the chance to kill at his command and caught Chaos Sorcerer’s eye. The spirit at once dropped down to one knee before him. 

“How may I be of service, Haou-sama?” 

Haou considered how to phrase what he sensed in his bones. “Who lives in this area?” He asked after a few moments. “And why aren’t they here now?” 

Chaos Sorcerer frowned, checking out the area for a few seconds. “It’s mostly wild creatures – spirits without human partners and the like.” The frown deepened. “It is too quiet. We should have heard more from them by now. I know there’s a pack of Wolves in the area that consider it theirs.” 

Skull Bishop glanced towards them as well. “I could go and search for them, Haou-sama? Ensure that they’re not attempting to wait in ambush?” 

Haou tilted his head forward. Best to ensure that. He suspected this Wolf pack – he vaguely recalled having seen a Wolf card when he’d been younger – simply departed the area when they became aware of him. It wasn’t likely to be anything else. 

At his agreement, Skull Bishop hurried forward, soon vanishing out of sight. The army moved forward, with Haou watching for any sign of his servant’s return or anything else that seemed to wish to cause issues. He spied a few small, harmless spirits, a Dryad here and a Rock Spirit there. He indicated for them to be left alone; both looked terrified at the presence of the army and would not be worth killing for Super Fusion. He needed duelists, warriors, not creatures that flinched at his merest glance. 

The farther along they moved, the more that unsettling feeling grew. Somewhere along the way, Haou noticed something else in the air – a hint of copper. His eyes narrowed at that. He’d seldom smelled it before, but he knew what it was. He wasn’t certain of how it could exist here, where those who died left only memories behind, but there it was. The scent of blood. 

Skull Bishop came back into sight, waving one hand. “Haou-sama, I discovered what happened to the Wolf pack,” he reported, more serious than Haou thought the situation might warrant. “It seems that hunters have trapped and killed them.” 

Haou frowned, not liking the sound of that. “For what purpose?” He ruled this world. He’d given no orders to have the Wolf pack slain. People should not die except by his command. Someone would have to pay for this. 

“Hunters might not be the right term,” Skull Bishop corrected himself. “The evidence I found indicates the wolves were slain and skinned before their bodies faded.” At Haou’s expression, he continued. “It can be done, but it depends on how they were killed. Normally if one falls to dueling, the death and dissolution of one’s form is all but instantaneous. But done in this fashion, they had time to take their prize.” 

“For furs?” Haou knew there would be trade in this world and nothing he did could stop that. That in no way meant that he condoned death without his command. 

Skull Bishop nodded. “I don’t know where they are now, but I have an idea.” He turned his attention to the west. “There’s a trading post there that deals with such materials. It’s the closest one that I know of.” 

Haou considered his options at this point. On the one hand, it could be considered beneath his notice to crush a pack of roving hunters. On the other, there was the simple fact that death had happened without his explicit permission. That wasn't supposed to happen. 

He also had their current target to deal with. He made up his mind. “Skull Bishop. Go there and find them. Keep them until I can get there. Tell them anything you wish. I will be there after I’ve dealt with this mission.” 

Skull Bishop bent his head forward into a quiet bow. “As you command, Haou-sama.” He turned at once and hurried along. Haou moved forward, hearing the soft whispers between the other Death Duelists, mostly envious at how Skull Bishop received such a delicious assignment. They would not argue, but they would be jockeying for the next chance to do something to please him. 

He wasn’t sure of how much farther they’d gone before the scent of blood grew even stronger, to the point he began to look for what creature might be bleeding. A moment’s thought and he gestured to Vampire Lord to come up closer. 

“Where is that smell coming from?” He asked the vampire. The other frowned, sniffing, before he gestured off to the left, in the opposite direction that Skull Bishop vanished off to. 

“There, Haou-sama. It’s very fresh – whatever’s bleeding is still alive.” He licked his lips, a light of hunger in his eyes. “May I ” 

“Inform me of what it is before you feed,” Haou ordered. Whatever was out there and injured might be worth saving and recruiting, or saving and having killed later. Or both. Haou could be flexible when necessary. 

He slowed down the progress of the army while Vampire Lord darted way into the surrounding bushes. He did not miss that a few of his soldiers stole a few handfuls of berries from some of those bushes. He allowed it; an army traveled on its stomach. He would not eat, though. He’d done so before he left the castle regardless. He would eat again when they got back. He would be hungry after putting in the effort to destroy their target. 

Vampire Lord wasn’t gone that long. He dropped to one knee before Haou, who noticed at once that there wasn’t a trace of blood on him. Very good. 

“It’s a Wolf, Haou-sama. I believe it’s of the pack that lived here.” He shook his head the tiniest bit. “It’s still alive but without care, it won’t survive.” 

Haou frowned. He hadn’t expected a survivor. Survivors meant the desire for revenge, to avenge those who had been lost. 

Something that others might have called a hint of compassion stirred deep within his heart. He refused to consider it such. This was merely – pragmatism. As he did everything now. 

“Show me.” Haou ordered, and Vampire Lord at once turned and obeyed. He left no trace of his passing but Haou followed him easily regardless. He could not help but recall Camula as he followed the vampire, and wondered if there were any connections between her people and the vampire spirits. Perhaps he would ask, when matters weren’t as serious as they were now. 

The closer they approached, the stronger the blood-scent grew, and now Haou could see tiny specks of blood, faintly glimmering in the comet’s sapphire light. He pressed his lips together and fought to control his rising rage. He wasn’t good at restraining his fury, but for now, he did his best. 

At last the trees and bushes thinned out to reveal a small area, into easily found except by someone who could pass through all tangles and undergrowth with the ease of a vampire. In the center of the area, by a tiny spring that bubbled up out of a rock, there lay a wounded Wolf, gray fur stained with blood, and two arrowheads lodged into it, one on a shoulder and the other in a flank. The shafts themselves had broken off, but the jagged heads couldn’t be so easily removed. 

Haou moved closer, freeing when the Wolf raised its great gray head and snapped at him. 

“Leave me to die, human,” it growled, lips wrinkling back from sharp white teeth. “Or I will take you with me.” 

Haou raised one eyebrow. “How?” He kept the question simple. “You don’t look capable of killing anyone. Nor of saving yourself.” 

Wolf snarled, claws flexing, then winced in pain. “This is no concern of yours. Either slay me yourself or let me be. I desire nothing else.” 

Such a proud creature, one that he would have been pleased to see in his army. Though it didn’t seem as if the creature could duel. But Haou took a step closer. 

“I have a third option.” Haou offered. “What if I can save you?” 

Wolf snorted, trying to rise up and failing. “There is no saving me. Do you not see my wounds? Those hunters sought to destroy my entire pack – and they have done so. Our hides taken and used for their ill-gotten gains – they laughed as they slaughtered us. They mocked our pain and reveled in it.” 

Another image flickered in the very back of Haou’s mind. He tried to ignore it, because of what else it was connected to – the thought of Johan Andersen. The hunter Geise – who slew spirits. 

_Johan would protect him. Heal him. Help him._

Haou knew he didn’t have Johan’s wide-open heart. But he knew vengeance in all of its flavor. He stood where he was. 

“I cannot heal you myself – but I know someone who can. She will take care of you until you are healed.” Haou considered his next words. “Those who did this to you – I already have one of my warriors tracking them down. I am Haou, and no one commits crimes such as this in my realm. I offer you the chance for a true revenge upon them.” 

Wolf stared at him, disbelief in every wounded line of himself. “Why would you do this? I have heard of you, Haou. They say that you care nothing for anyone who is not yourself. That your goal is to rule this entire world.” 

“And so it is. And under my rule, what happened to you will not happen to another.” 

Wolf didn’t stop staring. “What would you have me do for this largess of yours?” His voice grew softer with each word. There wasn’t much time left for him to decide and he and Haou both knew this. 

“Serve me. Become one of my warriors – you may not be able to duel but I have many ways to gain what I want for my goals.” 

Silence was his answer at first. Then Wolf slowly bent his head. “Then so shall it be. Heal me. Bring me vengeance for what has happened, and I will serve you until I am no more.” 

Haou turned to Vampire Lord, who stood there in silence the whole time, eyes never leaving the wounds. “Go to the castle. Inform Holy Elf that her services are needed here and why.” 

Vampire Lord quickly bent his head and vanished almost before the faint echo of the words faded away. Haou turned back to Wolf. 

“I would remove those arrowheads, but I would cause more damage doing so. Holy Elf will do it when she arrives. She will see to it that you’re in it shape very soon.” 

Wolf rested his head down on the ground, eyes closing. His breathing grew a little softer, but he didn’t seem ready to die just yet. Instead, he merely rested, trying his best to save his strength. Haou passed the time considering what changes this might make – he would keep Wolf close to him until the creature could be trusted on its own again. Everyone would have to be warned that Wolf was his servant as surely as they were. 

Wolf would, of course, have permission to defend himself as he saw fit, just like everyone else did. He’d already seen two of his lesser servants fight amongst themselves to determine who got to serve him. The survivor did very good work. 

It truly didn’t take long before Holy Elf and Vampire Lord both returned. Holy Elf hurried over, gentle hands brushing across Wolf’s blood-stained fur, checking over the extent of his injuries, and murmuring quiet words of encouragement. Then she turned to face Haou. 

“He’ll have to return to the castle for the bulk of his healing. But I can get him bandaged and enough healing done here for him to survive the trip back.” 

Haou nodded at once; he’d expected something like that. He didn’t know much about medicine but it just seemed to make sense that wounds of this nature couldn’t be banished with a wave of one’s hand. “Do it.” 

Holy Elf turned back to her new patient and started her efforts, whispering spells under her breath as she slid the arrowheads out and tossed them to one side. Now he could see the full size of them and Haou determined that those hunters would know pain before they finally died. Super Fusion would be too good for them. 

Wolf clenched his teeth together as Holy Elf worked. Haou could see the pain still reflected in his golden eyes – so much like his own, Haou realized. He and this proud creature had a great deal in common. 

He turned to Vampire Lord as the procedure continued. “Go to the army. Inform them that I will join them shortly. Then the mission will continue.” 

“As you wish, Haou-sama,” Vampire Lord bowed, hunger still visible as he slipped back the way they’d come. Haou would have to see to it that the vampire managed to get a good meal. He’d earned it. 

Until then, he kept an eye on what Holy Elf did with Wolf. Bit by bit through her efforts, Wolf began to relax. Not the relaxation into death, but from the easing of pain and wounds beginning to slowly knit together. He took deeper, less painful breaths, and his eyes glowed with far more health. 

“There,” Holy Elf said at last, rising to her feet and dusting off her gown. “He’s in good enough condition to return to the castle. Do you wish me to take him there, Haou-sama?” 

“Yes. I will return there after I deal with this current mission.” As much as he might wish otherwise, he had a task to pursue. Super Fusion would not be delayed – could not be delayed. 

She nodded. Wolf slowly pushed himself to his feet and shook away the dirt and leaves that stuck to him. He took a step towards Haou, carefully, as if uncertain if his own paws would support him. Then he bent his head carefully. 

“I will serve you, as I said,” Wolf declared. He raised his head to meet Haou’s eyes with his own. Haou wasn’t sure if wolves could actually smile or not but the intent seemed to be the same as Wolf’s tail wagged ever so briefly. 

“And I will bring those who slew your pack to you so you can determine their fate,” Haou promised. In truth, he wondered what kind of vengeance Wolf would want to wreak upon them. He knew what his would be – how much like him would Wolf really be? 

* * *

With Holy Elf escorting Wold back to the castle, Haou now returned to his troops. All in all, they hadn’t waited more than an hour for his little side trip, and the other Death Duelists had kept them all well in line. In silence he took his place at the head of the army once again and gestured for them to move forward. 

The moment that he came into view, the gossip between Chaos Sorcerer, Guardian Baou, and the Magician twins dried up. He knew they’d wondered why he was taking this tiny detour. He would explain it all later, when they weren’t off on business. He didn’t know if Vampire Lord had brought Holy Elf by them or not, but it didn’t matter. They would obey his will regardless. They knew the consequences of not doing so. 

There were a few other whispers and murmurs as they settled back into the rhythm of the trip. Haou didn’t often stop along the way to mass slaughter, after all. But they died down the farther they went, and no one dare to ask exactly what happened. All for the best. He wanted no rumors to get out, no matter what. 

Stomping the village into the dust didn’t take long at all. It was almost not worth all the effort. Dealing with Wolf felt far more rewarding. This was almost getting boring. There weren’t any duelists there that were good enough to even fight him, let alone give him an actual challenge. The last time he’d had a _real_ challenge – could he count Brron for that? Too difficult for him to be certain, since that brought up other thoughts that he didn’t want to think for right now. 

Perhaps when he’d fought O’Brien? Those days at Duel Academia appeared so distant and hazy. He could hardly think in the same ways now that he did then. The idea of going quietly to class, of everything being so _peaceful_ \- he couldn’t go back to that. Doing so would mean abandoning what he’d set himself to accomplish here and he couldn’t do that. He’d gone too far and done far too much to just let it all go. 

So he focused his attention on what he needed to do, regardless of how useless all of those who stood before him were. Most of his warriors easily mopped up the people in the village, taking down their defenders, and soon enough what had been a thriving little village wasn’t anything more than broken stone and burning wood. With a brief nod, he gathered up his forces once more and made a division. 

“The rest of you return to the castle,” he ordered. He nodded towards the Death Duelists. “Come along with me. We're going to meet with Skull Bishop.” He glanced towards Vampire Lord. “I give you permission to feed off of no more than two captives.” 

Vampire Lord bowed low. “My thanks, Haou-sama.” 

Haou nodded; he waited no longer before he started on the way to the trading post. He wanted to get this taken care of with all due speed. Chaos Sorcerer and Guardian Baou moved ahead, while the twins guarded his back. Normally Skull Bishop would have been there, for a slightly different configuration to guard him, but they made do with what they had. If anyone _did_ dare to attack him, they would not survive the experience – no longer than Haou wanted them to, anyway. 

The trading post took a bit longer to reach than the village had. Those of the village had probably frequented it – for all he knew, one or more of them could have chosen to purchase wolf furs there. Now that would never happen. It made him feel just a little more satisfied with what he’d done and what he was about to do. 

Like with most settlements of any kind, the trading post was surrounded by a palisade of wood, and there were two guards standing outside of it. The moment one of them, Warrior Lady of the Wasteland, saw them approaching, she leaped to full attention. 

“Haou-sama! You honor us with your presence!” Fear traced every single word that she spoke. “What can we do for you?” 

A quick glance to Chaos Sorcerer removed the need for him to address her. His servant moved forward. “We seek our companion, Skull Bishop. Has he arrived here?” 

“Yes, of course,” the warrior nodded, gesturing inside. “I believe that I saw him at the tavern, speaking with a few hunters about wolf-pelts.” 

Haou allowed himself the tiniest fraction of a smile. Then with a swirl of his cape, he strode past the guards and entered the trading post. The tavern was probably one of the few stone buildings here; the rest of the space was taken up by various areas that could be taken down and put up quickly as their owners needed, allowing them to travel between posts like this and wherever else they chose to sell their wares. As he marched through the post, he could see various shopkeepers staring in fear, withdrawing themselves as much as they dared. 

He gave them only the faintest of looks, moving onward until he reached the tavern. There sat Skull Bishop, with a group of rowdy men and women clad in blood-stained gear, very well armed and with the look of those who knew how to use those weapons. Two of them carried duel disks. One of them, perhaps the leader, was so involved in a raunchy joke being told that he didn’t notice Haou until the armored warlord stood right in front of him. 

Skull Bishop rose to his feet as soon as Haou stood there. “Here they are, Haou-sama. What is your will?” 

The one who’d been telling the joke broke off and stared. “Huh? What are you talking about?” He blinked owlishly at Haou, clearly having already had far too much than what would be good for him. “Who’re you? Did you want some beer? I’m buying! We got a _great_ > haul!” 

Haou regarded them coldly. “By which I presume you mean the Wolf pack.” Each word he bit off until it bled. 

“Sure do!” The man grabbed for the cup in front of him, missing twice. “Been hunting them for months! Finally got hold of them and stripped every last one of them!” 

“No, you did not. You missed one – that one now serves me.” Haou stated. He nodded towards his servants. “And you will pay for taking life without my permission – and it will be Wolf’s decision what to do with you.” 

In a matter of heartbeats, all five of the Death Duelists circled the hunters, disarming them with very little incident. They might well have been more dangerous if they hadn’t been drunk – a fact Skull Bishop had no doubt been counting on. Haou suspected he’d been plying them with beer since arriving there. 

He paid no attention to their struggles as he had the wolf-pelts gathered up. Those would be dealt with according to whatever fashion Wolf’s people had. As for the hunters themselves – that would all be up to Wolf. Haou looked forward to seeing what he wanted. 

On some level he’d always wanted a pet of his very own. He’d never been able to have one as a child. What a pleasant situation this had become – for him at least. 

* * *

**The End**

**Notes:** Haou is my favorite GX villain by far and we didn't see enough of him. Also, I will write more in this set of 1-shots for other days in GX month.


End file.
